A pair of teams from the Southeast Division take the floor as they look to pick up a victory down in South Beach. The Charlotte Hornets are on the road as they make the trip to face the Miami Heat to close out a two-game series Saturday night. These teams met on Thursday night down in Miami in a game where both teams blew opportunities in regulation before the Heat prevailed 117-112 in overtime to earn the victory. In the all-time regular season series between the teams, the Heat owns a 72-46 advantage and have won the last six meetings. Will the Hornets earn the split of the two-game set or will the Heat makes it seven straight victories against their division rival?
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Charlotte suffered their seventh straight loss and their ninth in the last 10 games as they battled only to end up falling short in overtime to the Heat Thursday night. The Hornets dropped to 3-10 on the season and sit in the basement of the Southeast Division, 5.5 games behind the Hawks for the top spot as they prepare for their third game in four nights. Against Miami, Charlotte trailed by five after one quarter, by eight at the half, by as many as 15 in the game and by 12 after three quarters before rallying. The Hornets actually led by five with 3:58 to play in regulation but couldn’t sustain the lead to end up in overtime. During the extra session, Charlotte was outscored 6-1 over the final 90 seconds to end up with the loss. The Hornets shot 48.9% from the floor, including 14 of 39 from three-point range, but lost the game at the charity stripe. Charlotte hit 12 of 20 at the free throw line while Miami canned 29 of 36 attempts. Kelly Oubre Jr. led six Hornets in double figures with 29 points and seven rebounds in the loss.
On the season, the Hornets are 25th in the league in scoring offense with 108.2 points per game. Charlotte is 6th in the league in rebounding as they collect 45.9 boards per contest and 11th in assists with 25.8 dimes per contest. The Hornets are 15th in scoring defense as they allow an average of 113.4 points per game. Terry Rozier leads the Hornets with 21.8 points plus 6.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game this season. Gordon Hayward (17.4 points, 4.3 boards, 4.1 assists), Kelly Oubre Jr. (18.4 points, 4.5 boards), P.J. Washington (15.4 points) and Dennis Smith Jr. (10.2 points, 6.2 assists) are solid contributors on the offensive end of the floor. Jalen McDaniels (9.9 points, 5.2 rebounds), Nick Richards (9.7 points, 6.2 rebounds), Mason Plumlee, Theo Maledon, Cody Martin, James Bouknight and Bryce McGowens are looked at to provide rotational depth for the Hornets. Charlotte is 28th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 44.1% from the field as a team. The Hornets are 21st in threes per game with 11 per contest and 23rd in three-point field goal percentage by shooting 33.3% from beyond the arc.
LaMelo Ball (ankle) has yet to suit up this season and was ruled out Wednesday night. He doesn’t have a firm timetable for return so it’s unlikely that he’ll take the floor here. Hayward (shoulder) and Martin (quad) both missed Thursday’s meeting with the Heat while Smith Jr. (ankle) left Thursday’s game and was unable to return. Keep an eye out for any updates regarding their respective statuses heading into tip-off.
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